No Escape
by ShutUpAndPaddle
Summary: The shriek of children came alive as the house ignites, can Horatio get everyone to safety, including his own team?
1. Chapter 1

**No Escape**

**Chapter 1**

Zoë was woken early in the morning with the need to visit the loo, again. She got out of bed as she exhaled.

"Morning beautiful" Horatio said as he woke up, feeling her move from him.

"Morning handsome" she said as she glanced over to him and quickly went to the loo. She emerged having dried her hands and sat on the side of the bed as she exhaled.

"I'm fed up of having to go to the loo so frequently already, and apparently it only gets worse…" She said looking back over at him.

"You're 14 weeks, it's going to be a little uncomfortable sweetheart. Come here, beautiful." He said as he sat up, giving her a smile. She shuffled over to him and he gently turned her and began to massage her shoulders and back.

"Mmm" she moaned in pleasure as Horatio's hands relaxed her muscles.

"Is this okay?" He questioned.

"Absolutely" she said softly as she exhaled, he felt her relax.

She felt her need for Horatio grow inside of her. She turned around, unable to fight her urges and leant on her knees as she placed both hands on his shoulders as she initiated a steamy kiss. She leant into him as he placed both hands on her hips, sensing her hormones grow wild.

"We'll be late." Horatio said softly as he delicately and slowly pushed her hips away.

"I don't care. The alarm hasn't even gone off yet." She said as she pushed herself towards him again. He was quickly succumbing to her hypnotic influence. '_How can I refuse when I don't get this too often anymore…'_ He thought to himself.

He let her straddle him as she pulled him in, away from the headboard he was leaning against as he ran his hands up her thighs.

She placed her hands on his bare chest as he began to run his hands up her top, up her spine. He grew and she dropped one of her hands from his chest as she tugged at the rim of his night pants.

They heard a knock at the door but Zoë didn't break from kissing him or move.

"Sweetheart, there's someone at the door." Horatio said, as he placed his hands on either side of her rib cage and eased her away.

"I need to get the door." Horatio said softly.

"Just leave it." Zoë said as she pulled her hand back up and dropped her head to kiss at his chest, feeling her hormones surge through her body. They heard the knock again and then the alarm screeched. She sighed as she got off him and hit the stop button as Horatio quickly pulled a shirt over him and a pair of joggers from the draw and put them on as Zoë lay in the bed, feeling frustrated. She heard the door open and a voice. She got up and walked through to the bathroom and closed the door. She got into the shower as she heard Horatio make his way back up the stairs.

"I'm sorry about that beautiful." Horatio said as he walked into the bathroom to pick up a towel.

"Who was it?" Zoë questioned, looking over the frosted glass.

"A man with a dog, looking for the dog's owner" Horatio said softly as he turned to her with a calm expression. Zoë nodded and carried on with showering as Horatio walked out and got himself a shower in the main bathroom.

Horatio was out before Zoë was and changed, she walked out in her bra and pants as she pulled a suit from the wardrobe and threw it on the bed.

"I'm not going to fit in to these before long; I have to leave the top button undone as it is. And my boobs; look at them! They're massive, I can't joke about them being too small anymore." She said as she looked down at them. Horatio smiled at her as he quickly glanced down at her breasts, unable to resist.

"We'll go shopping tomorrow and they weren't too small, they were perfect and they still are." Horatio said softly, a smile appeared across her face as she looked up at him.

"How flattering am I going to look in a suit and fat?" She questioned, almost disliking the image she was getting.

"You're not fat and perhaps we can get you something other than a suit, something a little more comfortable?" Horatio questioned.

"Like some dashing pregnancy trousers? Nuh-uh, I won't be seen dead in those things. I'd rather be uncomfortable in something than wear those hideous things." She said as she pulled the trousers up and did the first button up.

"Look, the second won't even go anymore…" Zoë said looking down at it.

"Sweetheart, just don't worry about it, okay?" Horatio said softly, knowing how self-conscious she can be. "You look beautiful" he said as she tried one of her large shirts on.

"No luck today either." She sighed as she threw it down and walked into her wardrobe and pulled a purple top and put it on.

"That goes, doesn't it?" She questioned as she walked out and looked into the full length mirror.

"Looks perfect" Horatio said softly as he did his last buttons up.

"Take your time and come down when you're ready." Horatio said softly as he passed her with a smile. She gave him a nod and straightened her hair. She walked downstairs and was greeted with a herbal tea, a yoghurt and a slice of toast.

"Thank you handsome." She said as she sat at the island counter and pulled the magazine towards her as Horatio sat the other side with his coffee. They chatted a little before heading off to work in Zoë's car as Horatio drove.

They quickly arrived at work and Horatio held the doors open for her as she thanked him and got the lift together.

Zoë walked into the locker room as Horatio went straight to his office after giving her a quick kiss.

She walked into the break room to be greeted by Ryan, already holding a cup of herbal tea for her.

"Thank you sweetie" She said as she sat down, holding the tea.

"How are you feeling today?" Ryan questioned as he sat on the side of the sofa on the arm rest.

"Good" she said with a smile.

"That's good, better than yesterday?" Ryan questioned.

"Much better" she said with a grin. "Sorry if I snapped at you" she said looking up at him apologetically.

"You didn't snap at me, but I think you gave that suspect just what he needed. He immediately confessed after you left in fear that you'd come back." Ryan chuckled with a smile. Zoë began to chuckle a little.

"Oh Lord, I guess crazy hormones bring something new to this job." She chuckled.

"Definitely" Ryan chuckled.

"He was only young though" Zoë said looking up at Ryan, feeling bad for the suspect.

"Don't you dare feel bad for him, he murdered 3 people, he got what he deserved." Ryan said, seeing that slightly guilty look in her eyes. Zoë smiled as she sipped the tea.

"Anyway, when are you taking time off?" Ryan questioned casually.

"When I have to… when I can no longer run, or when Horatio starts to have a heart attack on a regular basis…." She said with a smile. Ryan smiled at her.

"No sooner?" Ryan questioned, worrying about her.

"You're almost as bad as Horatio; I already have to wear a vest when I go to a crime scene, unless I get there later in enough time for Horatio to clear it." She said looking up at him with a raised eyebrow.

"We're supposed to worry about you." Ryan said softly, giving her a smile.

"Hmm, well you're both doing a lot more than you should." She said with a smile as she placed the cup on the coffee table.

"I'll be right back." Zoë said as she swiftly exited. She came back in just as Ryan was clearing the sides.

She slumped back down into the sofa as Ryan walked back over.

"What's up?" Ryan asked, seeing the displeased look plastered over her face.

"I'm fat." She said looking up at him, placing a hand over her stomach.

"You're not fat, look, my stomach is still bigger than yours." Ryan said with a cheeky smile. A smile developed across her face as Eric and Walter walked in.

"Hey, how are you 3?" Walter asked as he walked over to the other sofa.

"We're both good, just not liking the weight gain, look I can't even do up the two top buttons of my trousers..." Zoë replied with a smile as Ryan gave him a nod.

"You were tiny to begin with, you're going to notice the weight." Eric said with a reassuring smile.

"Tiny? I wasn't tiny, I was just right." She said with a smile.

"Just right then, but still small" Eric said with a grin.

"Fine, I'll give you small, but tiny is definitely an exaggeration." She grinned back at him.

"I bet you're still under half of my weight…" Walter grinned at her and she chuckled.

Horatio walked in and smiled at Zoë, seeing her laugh.

"We've got a call out" Horatio said as they all gave him a nod.

"Excellent" she said with a smile as she got up and walked over to the sink as the 3 other men walked out, leaving Horatio in the room with Zoë.

"How are you feeling?" Horatio questioned as she turned around and flashed him a smile.

"Good, the boys were just trying to convince me that they've got bigger stomachs than I have…" She grinned as she felt the familiar wave of light headedness hit her. She looked down and quickly crouched down and fiddled with her shoe.

"Zoë, are you okay?" Horatio questioned.

"Yeah, just need to sort my shoe out." She said softly as she carried on fiddling with it until the light headedness passed. She stood up and smiled at him.

"See, all good." She smiled and they then walked out together.

"You don't have to attend." Horatio said softly as he placed his hand on her back.

"I want to, I'd go crazy if I was cooped up in here all day." She said with a smile.

"And for your information, you've got a long way until you catch up with my stomach." Horatio said as they stood in the lift. She began to chuckle.

They drove to the scene and got out, Zoë following Horatio closely as he walked over to Frank.

"What have we got Frank?" Horatio questioned as he placed his hands on his hips.

"Well, Mr Wright over there claims that he's smelt something rotten for a few days. Some patrol cars came over and approached the door, but didn't get an answer." Frank said looking down at Horatio.

"That's definitely decomp" Horatio said as they both turned when they heard a noise coming from Zoë. They saw her gagging and covering her mouth. She quickly walked away and around to the side of the hummer.

"I'll be right back Frank." Horatio said as he pulled his sunglasses from his eyes.

"Sure H" Frank said as he looked back around to a few uniformed officers.

Horatio saw Zoë leaning against the hummer bent over breathing heavily out of the sight of others.

"Are you okay sweetheart?" Horatio questioned.

"Yeah, nothing like the smell of decomp in the morning." She said as she looked up at him. "It's not affected me this bad before, I could deal with it before." Zoë said looking up at him as he placed his hand on her back.

"Not to worry beautiful. Why don't you sit this one out?" Horatio questioned. "Where's your vest anyway?" Horatio questioned.

"It's too small for me now." She said as she stood up and placed her hands on her waist as she continued to take deep breaths, keeping herself from throwing up.

They walked back round the hummer and she tried to breathe through her mouth, but the smell still got to her. She coughed and apologised.

"I'm going to wait in the hummer." She said as she quickly turned and began to walk over to the hummer as Horatio quickly followed her as Ryan made his way over to them. Horatio placed his hand on her back as he caught up with her. He went to reach for the door handle when a loud explosion was heard and the forceful thrust of the air pressure ripple. Horatio immediately covered Zoë as much as he could, placing his arms around her head and body, holding her against the hummer as Ryan also threw himself over to them and tried his best to cover the remaining parts of Zoë which were unprotected.

"Radio for Fire & Rescue now!" They heard Franks voice boom.

Both Ryan and Horatio held their positions until they were certain she was okay and that nothing else was going to go on. They finally backed off as Horatio placed a hand on her arm as he looked around, still shielding her from any other potential threat. They saw the house engulfed in flames as black smoke rose through the roofing. They watched as the wind enraged the fire, spreading it to a nearby old dead tree.

"Well, at least no-one alive was in there." Walter said as he began to make his way over to Horatio. Horatio stepped away from Zoë, giving her a view of the house after he had scanned the area for any other danger, but failing to see any. He placed his hands on his hips as he tapped at his ID badge, thinking.

Suddenly the air came alive with the shriek of children. Every man and woman stood outside felt their heart rate increase. Their eyes were dragged up to the top side window as a child began to frantically bash it in hope of smashing it or at the very least, raising awareness.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Zoë felt a sense of protection shroud her head as pure instinct took over, unable to even question her thoughts. Before Horatio knew it, he saw Zoë running towards the house.

"Zoë!" He yelled as his protective instincts consumed his thoughts as he dashed after her.

"Zoë! Don't go in there!" Horatio yelled as the other officers watched, all morally confused. Ryan had just froze into position, unable to think clearly.

"There are children in there Horatio!" She yelled as she picked up her speed and ran straight into the door, shoulder first, knocking it to the floor. She stumbled as she stepped onto the unbalanced door. She quickly looked around, covering her mouth as she located the screams and made her way quickly to the stairs as Horatio ran in after her, taking her by the wrist.

"Zoë, get out now." Horatio warned, fearing for her and the baby's life.

"I'm not leaving children in here." She growled as she pulled her hand from Horatio's grip and ran up the stairs. Horatio instinctively ran after her, also wanting to get the children out.

They heard the screams coming from behind a closed door, Zoë tried opening it but it was obviously locked so she stepped back and ran into the door before Horatio had the chance to stop her. He pulled her away.

"Stay back." Horatio said as he put everything he had into kicking the door, in its weakened state it swung open. They quickly entered, seeing a woman lying on the floor in the middle of the room and two children huddled under the window, the eldest trying his best to protect his little sister.

Zoë ran past Horatio over to the children, uncovering her mouth as Horatio rushed over to the woman and felt for her pulse. Zoë quickly took her jacket off and placed it around the little girl while she coughed and pulled both kids into her arms.

"You're okay, we're going to get you out of here, don't worry." She said softly, her heart beating wildly as she looked over to Horatio, holding both kids tightly.

"There's no pulse." Horatio said as he got up and rushed over to her.

"We need to get them out now." Zoë said as Horatio placed his jacket over the brother. They pulled the siblings apart and picked up both children, Horatio taking the elder, who was roughly around 7 years of age. Zoë taking the younger sister, who was roughly around 5 years of age. Horatio ran out with Zoë closely following, both holding the children wrapped in their jackets.

All 4 of them began to cough because of the smoke thickening. Horatio made his way down the stairs, but Zoë was stopped meters from the stairs by a falling beam from the ceiling. Horatio looked back and saw a wall of fire between them.

"Zoë!" Horatio yelled as his heart rate accelerated. He saw her quickly jump through a gap in the fire and he ran down the stairs, knowing that she was past the beam. He ran out just as Zoë got to the middle of the stairs and reached daylight with the child in his arms. He looked back but saw no sign of Zoë, he looked back round to some officers running towards him. He again, looked back hoping to see Zoë appear with the child but she didn't show. Horatio placed the child on the floor before running back in as the officers snapped the child up and took him to the safety of the cars.

"Zoë! Zoë where are you?" Horatio yelled, covering his mouth and choking on the smoke.

"Zoë!" Horatio yelled as he made his way back over to the stairs.

"Take the child Horatio!" Zoë called and Horatio looked down at Zoë who was pinned to the floor by a heavy cabinet that had fallen on her.

"Zoë!" Horatio shouted as he darted over to her and took hold of the cabinet, trying to pull it up and off her. But it was too heavy for him alone.

"Horatio, take the child!" Zoë shouted trying to push the cabinet off.

"I'm not leaving you!" Horatio snapped.

"Just take the damn child Horatio!" She snapped back at him.

"Sweetie, go with Horatio, he's going to get you out of here." Zoë said as the child refused to move from her side, despite the danger around her. She had frozen in fear.

"Horatio! Take the child!" She yelled loudly and tried to push the child over to Horatio as she continued to struggle. "TAKE HER" Zoë shouted as she began to cough. Horatio picked the child up and ran out with her, literally throwing her into the arms of an officer.

"Eric! Wolfe!" Horatio yelled as he ran back in. Ryan had already began to run over to him before Horatio had even shouted for them, as he hadn't seen Zoë come out. Eric started on after Ryan and they saw Horatio run back in to the house.

They didn't hear the sirens from Fire & Rescue over the roar of the fire.

Horatio reached Zoë again and began to pull on the cabinet.

"Horatio, get out! Just leave me!" She shouted, fearing for his life.

"I'm never leaving you Zoë!" He yelled back at her and both Ryan and Eric ran in and over to them.

"We're going to get you out Zoë." Ryan yelled as both of them took hold of the cabinet and all 3 pulled on it. They slowly lifted it and pushed it back. Ryan and Horatio took her by the arms and lifted her to her feet as Horatio then lifted her and ran out with her in his arms with Ryan and Eric following. She was coughing violently and they saw two paramedics running towards them as the other crew loaded the two children on to the other ambulance. Walter stood there jaw dropped, having witnessed it all and was absolutely astounded.

The two paramedics reached Horatio as he carried on rushing over to the ambulance with the paramedics running alongside him.

"Her name is Zoë Chambers, she's 14 weeks pregnant and suffers from asthma, she was trapped under a large cabinet while she tried to get the youngest child out." Horatio stopped, not knowing what else to say.

"Thank you Lieutenant, you need to come with us to get checked out too." The dark haired male paramedic said as he noticed Horatio also coughing.

"Where's the children? Are they okay?" Zoë asked dryly as Horatio lowered her onto the stretcher. "You should be looking after them, not me!" Zoë raised her voice.

"Miss Chambers, stay calm for us, they're in good hands, they're on their way to hospital with another crew." The light haired paramedic said softly. They swiftly put Horatio and Zoë on oxygen and pulled Zoë's top up to place the ECG leads on. She looked down at her stomach and then over to Horatio and took a deep breath.

'_I'm already a bad mother!'_ She screamed at herself in her thoughts.

"I'm so sorry Horatio, something came over me and I couldn't fight it, I had to go in there and get those children." She said looking at Horatio, coughing a little.

"I know sweetheart, don't worry about it, we just need to get you both checked over." Horatio said softly, taking hold of her hand. She gripped his hand as she began to cough violently and sat up.

"Okay Zoë, I want you to take some deep breaths okay and stay calm for me." The dark haired paramedic said as he placed his stethoscope in his ears. He listened to her chest and then turned another nozzle. Horatio gripped her hand coughing himself a little. They saw Eric and Ryan rush over to the back of the ambulance.

"We're both going to the hospital, I need you both to process the house once it's safe if you're feeling okay." They both nodded at him and looked over to Zoë who's breathing was a lot better and her coughing had calmed down. Horatio's cough was also subsiding.

"There's a woman upstairs, she was locked in the room with two children, she's recently deceased." Horatio said dryly and they nodded.

"Keep us updated." Ryan said looking from Horatio to Zoë.

"We will." Horatio said. One paramedic closed the back doors and pulled off in the ambulance.

'_How could I be so moronic? Running into a fire while pregnant? I could've killed my baby… What if I killed my baby? What if I caused the baby damage? Oh God, I couldn't live with myself, Horatio will hate me. My God, my baby.'_ She thought in her head.

"I love you" Zoë said, looking over to Horatio, needing some sort of support.

"I love you too, both of you." Horatio said, rubbing her forearm as he squeezed her hand. "Just take deep breaths sweetheart, everything's going to be okay, there's no need to worry." Horatio said, knowing she was worrying.

They arrived at the hospital after Horatio calmly spoke to her in the ambulance, keeping her calm and stopping her from worrying about anything, also trying to reassure himself that the both of them were okay.

They saw Zoë's oxygen sats drop as they got her out of the ambulance.

"How many weeks is she now?" Nathan questioned as he walked beside Zoë as the paramedics took her through the ambulance entrance.

"14 weeks." Horatio said as he held her hand, walking alongside her.

"Zoë, try and keep calm for me sweet, everything is going to be okay." Nathan said softly as he placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Long, deep breaths sweetheart" Horatio said softly, looking down at her as she squeezed his hand. Nathan began to listen to her chest as they walked through.

"Through to majors please." Nathan said, quickly assessing her condition. They got her over to the bed and Nathan immediately took bloods and her blood pressure after shoeing the nurses away.

"Horatio, you need to get checked out." Nathan said softly, hearing Horatio cough.

"I'm not leaving her." Horatio snapped, Nathan immediately backed off and kept quiet, knowing just how stressful a situation like that could be.

"At least let me put you on oxygen, please?" Nathan questioned very softly. Zoë nodded and looked over at Horatio, silently telling him to accept.

"I'm fine, just concentrate on Zoë and the baby." Horatio said looking to Nathan.

"Horatio, just take the oxygen, please." She said looking up at him. "It'll make me feel better." She said, knowing there was no way he could argue his way out of that one. A small smile appeared in the corner of Nathan's mouth as he knew Zoë had Horatio. Horatio exhaled and nodded. Nathan quickly placed a mask over his face as Horatio sat next to Zoë. Nathan quickly attached a pulse oximeter to his finger.

He quickly disappeared to grab an emergency ultrasound and returned with the machine.

"I've not used one of these in a long time, so please excuse me if I'm a little rusty. There's nothing to worry about, I'm only checking as a precautionary measure." Nathan said softly, not wanting to stress either of them.

"But I could have endangered the baby?" She questioned.

"It's only a precautionary measure, Zoë. There isn't anything to worry about sweet." Nathan said softly.

"But I could have endangered the baby, you're not ruling it out yet are you?" She questioned a little more forcefully.

Nathan exhaled. "There's the possibility that the smoke and the weight of the cabinet could have done some damage, but as I say, I don't think there's anything wrong and that it's just a precautionary measure." Nathan said again, seeing Zoë get more and more distressed by the second.

"I'm already a bad mother, for goodness sake! How can I be expected to bring up a child if I can't even–" Zoë had begun as tears collected in her eyes.

"Zoë, you're not a bad mother and you never will be. Don't ever tell yourself that because I know it's not true and everyone around you knows that it'll never be true." Horatio said softly, taking a hold of her hand and stopping her from getting angry at herself.

"But I just ran in that house without thinking! When I saw those children, I just ran." She said looking at him. "Horatio, I didn't even think about the baby, all I thought about were those kids." She said looking at him.

"Zoë, that's your maternal instinct coming out, you saw a child in danger and you'd do anything to stop it from happening. It's quite common. Don't beat yourself up about it." Nathan said as he sat on the side of her bed.

Zoë looked at him as her eyes softened. "Let's just get this scan over and done with and then we can focus on the both of you." Nathan said softly. She exhaled and gave him a nod.

"I'm just going to lift your top, okay? I apologise the gel is cold." Nathan said and she gave him a nod. He showed them the screen.

"Everything looks and sounds perfect, there's nothing to worry about." Nathan said with a smile as they listened to the heartbeat.

A smile appeared across both Horatio's and Zoë's faces as they looked up at the screen and tightened their grip on each other's hands.

"Horatio, just take a few deep breaths for me please." Nathan said softly, looking at the monitor attached to him. Zoë looked over to his monitor and saw that his sats had dramatically dropped.

Horatio did as he was asked and they seemed to improve more.

Nathan packed the machine away and took it out after he handed Zoë some wipes to wipe the gel off her stomach. She pulled her top down and looked over to Horatio.

"I did say there was nothing to worry about." Horatio said with a smile.

"I'm still so sorry Horatio." She said sincerely, looking at him.

"Sweetheart, don't worry about it." Horatio said softly.

"But I could have gotten you killed as well as the both of us." She said as tears welled in her eyes.

"I'm such a moron." She said as she threw her head back.

"You're not a moron, Zoë and none of us were hurt, okay? Look, you saved two children today, they're alive now because of you." Horatio said softly standing up, pulling the oxygen mask off and leaning over as he sat on the bed and pulled her in to comfort her.

"How are the children?" She questioned as she wrapped her arms around Horatio.

"I've heard that they're good and that they've been released into the care of the social services." Horatio said softly next to her ear.

"So stop worrying." Horatio said with a smile as he pulled back and placed a kiss on her forehead. She looked up at him and gave him a smile.

"What would I do without you?" She questioned.

"I ask that question every day." He said with a smile and it brought a smile to her face.

"Okay?" Horatio questioned as he wiped a few tears from her cheeks.

"Yes, thank you handsome." She said as she looked into both of his eyes.

Nathan walked back in.

"Everything okay?" He questioned as he looked at the both of them.

"Yes, it's just the hormones." She said with a smile.

"Horatio, put that oxygen back on, you're almost as bad as Zoe." Nathan said as he walked over to them and placed his hand on Horatio's back. Horatio hopped off the bed and placed the oxygen back on and Zoë gave him a smile.

"We're going to keep you both in for observation for a little while, once your oxygen sats improve, you'll be discharged soon unless anything drastic happens, so keep yourselves out of trouble." They both gave him a nod and he walked back out. Horatio's oxygen sats improved to the normal level after 30 minutes while Zoë's remained a little low. Nathan took him off the oxygen and he sat on Zoë's bed as they continued to speak.

Zoë began to feel better in herself as Horatio observed her oxygen sats improve gradually. An hour later they were both discharged after Zoë's oxygen sats improved and Nathan was happy to let them go.

"Mr Wolfe is on his way to pick us up and take you home." Horatio said softly as they slowly walked out.

"What do you mean take me home? If you're going back to work then I am too." She said looking at him.

"You should get some rest, it's been a stressful day sweetheart." Horatio said softly, not wanting to get into an argument about it.

"Then so should you, it's been just as stressful for you." She said looking at Horatio, sweetly.

"Yes, but I'm not… I'm not carrying our baby." Horatio said delicately.

"What difference does it make?" She questioned him, in reality he didn't want her out in the field a second longer.

"Okay, we'll both take the afternoon off, okay?" He questioned softly, knowing he wasn't going to win. A smile appeared across her face as she nodded, she linked arms with him as they walked. They got outside just as Ryan pulled up and quickly hopped out, rushing over to them.

"Is everything okay? You two and the baby?" Ryan quickly questioned.

"We're all good." Zoë said as she smiled at Ryan.

"I'm glad to hear that, you both had us all worried." Ryan said softly as they walked over to the hummer.

"Sorry about that." Zoë said softly.

"Don't worry about it, just glad to hear you're okay." Ryan said as he opened the front passenger door for her. She hopped in as Horatio jumped in to the back and Ryan got in the front. They all clicked their seatbelts into place and drove off to the lab.

"Have you managed to find anything in the house?" Horatio questioned, looking over to Ryan.

"Yeah, a few things. Fire & Rescue managed to salvage most of the house before the fire destroyed it. The woman upstairs was found dead after she hit her head on the corner of the table, the other two bodies were slightly burnt and decomposing but Alexx found bullet wounds. She'll know more later." Ryan said as he drove.

"Okay, thank you Mr Wolfe. Zoë and I are taking the afternoon off, I'll ring Eric but I'll get some more help in for you 3." Horatio said softly and Ryan nodded at him, thinking it was for the best. They all had a conversation and they eventually got to the lab. Zoë and Horatio thanked Ryan and went over to Horatio's car and drove back to Horatio's.

They had a chilled afternoon and Horatio made dinner.

They sat and ate, before cleaning up and walking through to the living room.

"I've been meaning to bring something up with you and I think it's more important now than it ever has been." Horatio said softly, looking over at her, taking hold of her hand.

"Okay?" She said looking at him, wondering what he was going to say.

"I think it's best that we move you to desk work… there's just too much danger for you out in the field and today has just proved that. I can't watch you both be put in so much danger. I thought I'd lost you again today when you ran in there, I don't think I could handle that again, beautiful." Horatio said softly, looking into her radiant brown eyes. She swallowed and nodded.

"I don't like the idea of it, but I think I have to agree." She said softly, knowing it was the sensible thing to do.

"But I'm not quitting work." She said just to confirm.

"No, not quitting work, I just want to move you to desk work, I know paperwork isn't your favourite thing, but it's necessary." Horatio said with a smile, happy that she was agreeing with him.

"That's okay, I agree. It'll also give you some extra time in the evening if I can do your paperwork for you." She said with a smile. Horatio gave her a smile.

"But if a situation ever arose in the lab and it poses as a potential threat to either of you, you are not to do anything drastic or to draw attention to yourself, okay?" Horatio said softly, knowing that situations like that can easily come around.

"Okay, I promise I won't put any of us in danger again." She said with a small shy smile.

"Good. " He said with a smile as he threaded his hand in her hair and began to play with the long strands as she leant against him with her head on his shoulder. They sat there talking for about 20 minutes, watching the TV.

"I think I'm going to go for a bath handsome, my back is killing me." She said as she sat up straight.

"Okay beautiful. Give me a shout if you need anything." Horatio said with a smile as he dropped his hand from her hair to her back and began to rub her back as she began to get up. She quickly sat back down again when she felt him rubbing her back and exhaled slowly, liking the feeling of his hands on her back, she'd also gotten up too quickly and felt lightheaded so used the back massage as an excuse to sit back down. He sat forwards and brought his left up to her back and began to give her a proper massage. She dropped her head forwards as she relaxed.

"I didn't realise that my back would hurt so early in the pregnancy, I thought women only got back ache when they were massive." Zoë said softly as she lifted her head and looked back round to him.

"Well, you're carrying a lot more weight than you usually would so I can easily understand how you'd get back ache." Horatio said softly as he continued to rub her back.

"I think you also need a back rub after carrying my fat arse out of that house earlier…" She said with a smile and a small chuckle.

"You're still not that heavy." Horatio said softly.

"I'm going for that bath now, thank you handsome." She said with a smile as she stood up. Horatio gave her a smile and also got up as she did. She ran the bath and relaxed while Horatio had a shower.

She quickly got out and changed into her shorts and a shirt then walked through to the bedroom as Horatio walked out drying his hair with the towel. She gave him a smile and climbed into bed, Horatio wasn't long after.

"I'm really sorry I've not been too close with you, like sexually. I don't get the feeling very often anymore… it's this baby. When I do, my gosh, I need you." She said feeling bad.

"Don't worry about that sweetheart, I don't mind at all. I knew it could happen and I'm fine with it." Horatio said with a smile, reassuring her.

"Really, don't worry beautiful." Horatio said with a smile, cupping her face. She gave him a smile.

They both shuffled down and Zoë snuggled up close to Horatio.

"My stomachs going to get in the way of us before long" she sighed, realising that she couldn't get as close to him as she used to.

"Doesn't matter, just means that I'll be the one snuggling up to you." Horatio said with a boyish smile which made Zoë chuckle.

"Do you want a boy or girl?" Zoë asked, looking up at Horatio.

"I don't mind, as long as we have a healthy baby, I'm very happy with either." Horatio said with a smile. "How about you, beautiful?" He questioned, rubbing her back as he pulled her top up slightly.

"Same really, although, I do love the idea of a baby girl" she grinned at him. "No, actually a baby boy, then a baby girl" she cheekily grinned. Horatio looked down at her and a grin appeared across his face.

"Why's that?" Horatio questioned.

"Well because I think the relationship between an older brother and a sister is something special, I mean… I've seen sisters and brothers and brothers with brothers and sisters with sisters. But nothing has seemed as special as the bond between an older brother and a younger sister." She said with a smile. Horatio nodded, understanding, seeing the bonds himself.

"You were the older sibling, I can guarantee you that Ray looked up at you in everything you did, I know I looked up to Josh." She said with a small smile. "I also bet that you looked out for Ray just as Josh looked out for me." She said with a small smile, looking up at him.

'_I'd like to think I did, but I'm not so sure.'_ Horatio thought, remembering his childhood and trying to protect Ray from their father.

"How many children would you like?" She asked softly.

"2 or perhaps 3, how about you, beautiful?" Horatio questioned.

"I'd love 2, 3 may be pushing it a little, but I'll keep an open mind." Zoë said softly and Horatio nodded as he smiled at her.

"Sorry handsome, I need the loo again." She said as she rolled over and climbed out of bed and went to the loo again. She walked out and over to her bed and sat on the edge. She climbed into bed and laid on her back, feeling more comfortable. Horatio rolled over to her and shuffled over.

"I'm going to be the size of this house before long." She said as she looked over at him.

"Then there will be more of you to love." Horatio said with a boyish grin. Zoë laughed as she looked up at the ceiling.

"Thanks" she said as she looked back down to him with a wide grin. He smiled at her, loving her laugh as he pulled her top up and began to delicately rub her stomach. She smiled at him as she began to relax further.

"You're going to be such a great father Horatio; I know that there isn't anyone on this Earth who could do a better job than you, there isn't anyone on this Earth that I'd rather be with and share this with." She said with a smile.

"You're going to be a fantastic mother too, there's no-one else in this world who I'd rather share this with." Horatio said as he smiled at her. Their eyes sparkled as they gave each other a tender kiss.

"Good night beautiful, I love you." Horatio said with a smile.

"Good night handsome, I love you too. Sweet dreams." Zoë said as she gave him another quick kiss. Horatio continued to rub her stomach until he fell asleep.

**As ever, thank you all for reading, I will have the first chapter of the next story (Twisted Tragedy) up tomorrow afternoon (Sunday). **


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